To Infinity and Beyond: A May 2011 Pixar Weekend Trip Report

Less than one month after returning from my April trip, and just two months after our wedding/Disneymoon trip, Brett and I were back at the World. How’d it happen, you ask? Well, on a rainy Friday morning, two weeks prior to Pixar Weekend, Brett sent me an email detailing some of the rare characters expected at the event and ended it by stating that we should totally go. I think he was half joking, because my response, “Let’s do it,” isn’t really what he was expecting. We decided to meet up for lunch that day and after discussing expenses and planning out a budget, we realized a short three-day weekend trip was totally doable. Huzzah!

We booked an AP rate at CBR the very same day. However, after more discussion that evening, we decided to switch to a value resort and upgrade our APs to Premium passes with the extra money we would’ve spent on the moderate! We had planned to go to a water park at least once during this trip and decided that, the upcharge for premium passes would pay for themselves after two water park visits. And bonus… merch is 20% off with a premium pass!

What we didn’t do, was book a lot of ADRs. Shocking, I know! Instead, we decided to just go with the flow and save a little cash since it was a bonus trip. We made two ADRs (the Wave and Kona) and figured we’d just wing it from there.

Pixar Weekend here we come! Thursday, May 12 – Sunday, May 15. Scratch that… Monday, May 16. Yeah, once we got there we totally ended up adding another day.

The cast… Mr. and Mrs. Hollybelle!

Oh yeah… two new minor obsessions came of this trip: Vinylmation trading and Pook-a-Looz love! But more on that later… right now, I have a little Pixar preview for anyone out there who may or may not have a panic attack if they have to wait much longer (I’m looking at you, Karen!).

Booooooo!

 

[HollyBelle]

Day 1 – Thursday, May 12: Check-in/DHS/Epcot

In true fashion, we left home early so we could maximize our time on arrival day. It was approximately 1:30pm when we rolled up to the guard shack at the All-Stars. And we were STARVING. So much so, that we ran inside, checked in, and ordered a couple pizzas at the food court before I realized Ginger was still in the car. It’s so not like me to leave her behind. Tragic. This means no pics of the End Zone personal pizzas, and really, who will ever forgive me for missing that golden opportunity? That being said, the pizzas were just so-so and it took about 15 minutes for us to get our food (in an empty food court).

Luckily though, our room was ready so we were able to go ahead and make our way to the Hoops Hotel after lunch! Where, I’m pretty sure, they were playing music from the aptly titled Space Jam film of the 90’s. I love you, All-Stars, but I can’t say I’ve missed you much lately. :lol:

Looking for room 3227…

Found it!

While the room was sparse in comparison to the mods/deluxes (single sink, no refrigerator, etc.), I’ve got to give major credit to the All-Star Sports. I’ve never, in all my stays at WDW, experienced a room so clean and well kept up throughout our vacation. Our mouse-keeper cleaned our room so thoroughly each day, that you would’ve thought she was cleaning it between guests and not for the same guests. And now that I think about it, we stayed here during our May 2008 vacay and had a very similar experience with the cleanliness of our room (at the time I attributed it to the recent refurb). So, props to mousekeeping at the All-Star Sports and to management for running a tight ship.

 

[HollyBelle]

We unpacked, changed, and got settled in before heading off to the Studios. It’s worth pointing out that meeting rare characters for Pixar Weekend wasn’t our only mission on this trip, catching a soft opening of Star Tours 2.0 was on the agenda as well (yeah, yeah, this trip report is so behind the times already :lol.

But first, close up shot of a nifty new camera strap!

When we arrived at the gates we approached one of the ticket windows and exchanged our APs for their premium counterpart. Next stop: Star Tours 2.0. Which was NOT open.

In Pixar Place we were met with chaos and a 70-minute wait for TSMM. No thanks! Off to the Animation Academy! We went to see the Magic of Disney Animation, probably only my third time ever seeing this. Unfortunately though, no pictures were allowed.

Ohh… Eeyore – thankfully, the Backsoon didn’t get you!

Finn McMissile and Holley Shiftwell are pretty fly, but that’s about as much excitement as I can muster for Cars 2. Sighhhh.

We headed down Sunset Boulevard and picked up fastpasses for the Tower of Terror. With our ToT return time only 35 minutes away, we filled the time with the Rock-n-Rollercoaster.

Every once in a while when you “single ride” RNR, you end up placed together anyway. Some of the CMs will just throw two single riders in the very last car if none of the next two or three groups in the standby line are a group of two. Rather than try to get word back through the line of people who aren’t paying any attention anyway, they just send a couple single riders to the last car. We got lucky on this one and ended up together for our first ride of the trip! And it doesn't hurt that the very back of the limo is the best way to ride RNR.

 

[HollyBelle]

After the show, we still had some time before our fastpass return at ToT, so made our way back down Sunset, stopping in at the Scary Apothecary for some water.

 

[HollyBelle]

Time to check-in at the Hollywood Tower Hotel. This may well be my favorite ride on property!

Next stop: Star Tours 2.0 – still NOT open. :lookaroun :lol:

 

[HollyBelle]

Then it was back to the Magic of Disney Animation, where we were met with some of the Fantasmic characters. Hooray for villains! I remember when they first started bringing them out in 2009, and it’s nice to see that they’re still doing it. It’s too bad they aren’t able to bring them out around the hat, because the pictures would be soooo much better if they did. But I’m guessing it would interfere with the ever-popular High School Musical.

We were going to watch the Voyage of the Little Mermaid, but the next one wasn’t set to start for another 30 minutes. I swear, the timing hardly ever works out and then we end up skipping it. Instead we wandered over by the Chinese Theatre where Minnie and Max were hanging out. The oddest thing about this is that we’d just seen Max inside the Magic of Disney Animation. Seemed especially odd, given he’s a slightly rarer character.

Fist bump!

It was time for dinner, and Brett and I were a bit like fish out of water. Umm… dinner without reservations? Whatever are we supposed to do with ourselves?! :lol: And at the Studios, no less. Oh wait, I know – go to Epcot!

But first, Star Tours 2.0 – Would you believe it still was NOT open? :lol:

 

[HollyBelle]

Friendship boats are made of win!

When we arrived at Epcot we first hit up the Rose & Crown pub, hoping to find a seat at the bar. It was packed, however. So we moved on to plan B: the Yakitori House! Over our last couple trips, this place has really moved up the ranks.

 

[HollyBelle]

After dinner we were off in search of some champagne. France or Italy, that was the question?! Italy won out.

Brett ordered the Prosecco and I had a Bellini, which is the heavenly combination of Prosecco and some frozen peach concoction... it could also be called the nectar of the gods!

You see, when we drink champagne it’s always in celebration of something. Sure it may be something as inconsequential as buying the bottle :lookaroun ... nevertheless, tradition dictates a toast and we always find reason. But this one was legit; it was the eve of Brett’s graduation! Huzzah! Cheers my love - you make me so proud! Epcot has got to be the best place ever to toast success and the future, especially for someone like Brett. I mean, the man has a symbol of Horizons tattooed on his back. For those who think we are totally crazy, Brett had decided not to “walk” long before we planned this trip, so it’s not like he skipped out on a graduation ceremony just for Pixar Weekend. Really. I swear.

Just to note, when we strolled through France a little later, I noticed the champagne at the cart across from Les Chefs was about $4 more per glass ($9 vs. $13) – I thought that was a pretty big jump considering the bump in quality couldn’t really be accounted for. So, if you’re like me and you’re looking for a tasty glass of champagne, but your palette for such isn’t all that refined, hit up Italy for a glass of bubbly and save France for the Gran Marnier goodness. :slurp: You can thank me later!

 

[HollyBelle]

We spent the rest of the evening strolling around the countries, enjoying ourselves and marveling over the fact that we were back in World Showcase again so soon. Around 8pm we headed back to the International Gateway to start making our way back to the car, which was parked over at the Studios. All told, it probably took an hour to get from the Gateway all the way back to the All-Stars. Sometimes the boats can be so slow.

We stopped in at the front desk to see if we could add that extra night I mentioned earlier to our room reservation, which I didn’t think would be a problem. Turns out, they couldn’t tell us whether or not they would have a room for us until Saturday (48 hours prior to check out). I thought this was kind of strange - anyone else ever experienced something like this?

We grabbed some snacks, a white macadamia nut cookie for Brett and an orange cranberry muffin for me. I love the orange-cranberry combination, but Disney somehow found a way to make it taste horrible. My muffin was beyond bad, which was disappointing, but oh well. Brett’s cookie was pretty tasty, however, so all was not lost. Time for a good night's sleep and then... rare Pixar characters, here we come!

 

[PartOfYourWorld]

Yay!! Another Hollybelle Trip Report!! :sohappy:

I must say I absolutely LOVE your pictures you took of different details around the Tower of Terror!!! You must have known that was my favorite ride and I was missing it!

And I agree with the friendship boats for the win! Even though sometimes they are the slower transportation route..they are my favorite!

Can't wait to see what rare characters you meet!!!!!!

 

[joanna71985]

Yay! I already know I'm going to like this TR

 

[HollyBelle]

Yay!! Another Hollybelle Trip Report!! :sohappy:

I must say I absolutely LOVE your pictures you took of different details around the Tower of Terror!!! You must have known that was my favorite ride and I was missing it!

And I agree with the friendship boats for the win! Even though sometimes they are the slower transportation route..they are my favorite!

Can't wait to see what rare characters you meet!!!!!!

Thanks, Jess. You may or may not have noticed this, but I have trouble naming favorites... it's hard to commit to calling something my favorite, because I love it all so much. But the Tower of Terror really may be my favorite ride!

The boats really are so relaxing. We're staying at the Dolphin on our next visit, so I have a feeling we'll be using them quite a bit!

Yay! I already know I'm going to like this TR

Woohoo! Why didn't we get a picture together? I was kicking myself afterwards for that.

 

[Ariel484]

You lucky girl!! :lol: Love the trip report so far...huzzah for rare Pixar characters and ToT love!

And congrats to the graduate...way to go Brett!! :sohappy:

Can't wait for more.

EDITED TO ADD: Oops, almost forgot...thanks for the Italy vs. France champagne tip. I'll have to remember that one for next time...that $4 price difference is pretty crazy! I do hope you made time for the Grand Marnier goodness this trip. :slurp:

 

[HollyBelle]

You lucky girl!! :lol: Love the trip report so far...huzzah for rare Pixar characters and ToT love!

And congrats to the graduate...way to go Brett!! :sohappy:

Can't wait for more.

EDITED TO ADD: Oops, almost forgot...thanks for the Italy vs. France champagne tip. I'll have to remember that one for next time...that $4 price difference is pretty crazy! I do hope you made time for the Grand Marnier goodness this trip. :slurp:

Shannon!!! Thank you.

Yeah, I was pretty surprised by the price difference in each glass of champagne. Surely, they can't taste all that much different. Unfortunately, there were no Gran Man slushies this trip. But there were definitely more adult beverages... and that's always a good thing. :animwink: :sohappy:

 

[PolynesianPrincess]

Hooray for Pixar weekend!! Can't wait to see some rare characters pics.

I think when we get down to the world next week we're going to try and get some character pics we haven't done (like the characters by the hat and hopefully the villains!) I know they're not rare, but to us, they are since we've never taken the time for pics with them.

ToT is DEFINITELY my favorite ride.... Along with Space Mountain, Splash Mountain and Rock N Roller Coaster :lol: You're right it is SO hard to pick just one!

 

[WDWFigment]

Wow...that camera strap you made is awesome.

You saw the Mary Poppins penguins?! That's awesome. We've never seen them. I guess we need to head to the Animation building more!

We seem to see Max all the time (well, for a rare character), and he's always in random spots. In Epcot by the Fountain of Nations, in DCA by the Monsters, Inc. dark ride, etc...

Hope you got to see more of the rare Pixar characters that weekend than we did!

 

[Kristia]

Looking forward to another Hollybelle report! Congrats to Brett! We took a graduation celebration trip when Dan graduated from PT school. Nothing better than a stress-free trip with no homework, tests and practicals to worry about while you are there. He also got a job offer while we were on that trip! I remember we were in line for Space Mountain when he got the call.:lol:

 

[plaz10]

Yay for Holly TRs! It would be a bigger 'yay' if you extended your trip by 2 days instead of one and we could have met up! Ha ha!

Congrats to Brett on graduating. And even if he did make the decision to not 'walk' because of Pixar weekend - who would blame him? :lol:

 

[Southern_Tink]

Yay! I've been waiting for the latest HollyBelle TR! I'm so excited to read this one because we will be in WDW the same time next year to celebrate my college graduation. I've never been in May, so I'm looking forward to seeing your pictures and getting a feel for crowds, weather, Pixar Weekend, etc.
A HUGE congrats to Brett and a fantastic way to celebrate his graduation, I'm totally stealing the champagne in Epcot idea to toast to mine!

 

[lbrad]

YEAH ... can't wait to read more of your FAB TR!!

Will remember the champagne tip on my next trip ... not sure when that will be ... but it will be

Congrats to Brett on his graduation :sohappy: